Far to the north, where winter storms crash against the coastal cliffs, lies a long, narrow country. It is covered with endless dense forests where lakes glow on moonlit nights, and the majesty of the gloomy mountains is breathtaking. When you sail in a small boat between the gloomy rocks of the Norwegian fjords, it is not difficult to understand how the legends of Valhalla and the harsh Scandinavian gods were born. On a cloudy, foggy day, it’s easy to imagine the boats of proud Vikings in these mysterious backwaters. Norwegians are very proud of their ancestors.

Today, snow and ice cover this country six months of the year. But it wasn't always like this. Once upon a time, in its place lay a huge glacier that covered the entire territory of the country for thousands of years. Gradually, with the warming of the climate, the glacier retreated to the north, and People followed on its heels. Having seen the splendor of this country, they stayed here and called themselves "Normans" (People of the North).

However, soon they noticed on this land numerous strange creatures that possessed supernatural powers, but at the same time were very careful and did not allow themselves to be detected. People started calling them Trolls. Gradually, Trolls began to appear in fairy tales. Interestingly, the legends describe them in very contradictory ways.

Trolls can be small varieties of gnomes, or they can be as huge as mountains (of course, they are distant relatives of the titans, who were born from rocks and ate rocks). The only thing in which the legends do not contradict each other is that the trolls were disgusting and ugly. There are stories about two-headed and even three-headed trolls, there are one-eyed trolls, like Cyclops, many have moss and even trees growing on their heads. Despite their terrifying appearance, there are also good trolls, but they are all so naive and stupid that even village boys could easily outwit them. All Trolls live inside the mountains, or nearby, in caves where they hide their countless treasures; they come out only at night, waiting for unlucky travelers under the bridge. They feed on meat, kidnapping livestock and people. Most of them live to be a hundred years old, but sunlight is destructive to them, and in the morning, if the troll does not reach the shelter, he will die, turning to stone.

There are also some really creepy stories. Trolls are cold creatures, and only the warmth of human blood can warm them. But trolls do not always kill and eat their victims. They could grab and drag a woman into their cave to turn her into a slave, forever buried in the darkness and dampness of an underground lair. She could also become a troll's wife. She was smeared with a disgusting ointment, her skin became rough, covered with blisters and fur, her face changed, and she became as ugly as her husband.

Troll girl from France

Veronica Collection

Our cutie Troll was waiting for us not in Norway, but in France. In a small town not far from Strasbourg, we came across a small shop. Everything that was sold there had to do with Norway. There we found this bell, with a not at all scary, but funny troll.

But there is also a way to deal with trolls. If you ask a troll a riddle, he will have to solve it. If he cannot solve it, he will die, but if he solves it, he will answer with his own question, and this will continue until someone loses. In such a situation, you need to try to keep the troll busy with riddles until dawn, because with the first rays of the sun the troll will immediately turn into stone and this will be your salvation, otherwise he will tear you apart.

Troll Wall. The highest vertical and overhanging rock wall in Europe with a height of 1000 meters. Eldorado for selected climbers, both in summer and winter, with the most difficult climbing routes in the world. Here are the origins of mountaineering in Scandinavia. This amazing place is located on the West Coast of Norway, in the Ramsdal region. According to legend, the trolls who once lived in these parts were turned into intricately rugged cliffs of strange shapes. Since then, the Troll Wall, replete with difficult, unclimbed routes, has attracted climbers from all over the world. The Troll Church is also located there.

Previously, trolls ate people, but now they play dirty tricks on little things - they steal keys or puncture a tire. But in Norway they are used to them, and no one is offended. Moreover, everyone has their own little troll at home, which helps to cope with the “evil spirits”, for example, with the tax inspector. Even in our modern world, Norwegians respect trolls, because no one knows in advance where and when you will meet them.

Material prepared by Veronica

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Stories about trolls first appeared in the Scandinavian countries, and each had its own: Norwegian, Swedish and Danish, and later they even appeared on the distant Faroe Islands. And the biggest trolls come from Iceland. According to legends, these creatures have always frightened local residents with their appearance and witchcraft abilities.

They lived everywhere - in castles, underground palaces, caves, forests or under bridges. People had something to fear: some hostile trolls were dangerous enemies, strong and cruel.

They brought a lot of torment and trouble to the villagers, luring people to their deaths or stealing sleeping babies from their cribs. The troll is a cunning deceiver who lives in constant darkness and attacks defenseless settlements at night.

In Norway it was believed that trolls were strikingly different from each other both in appearance and in character; some of them are giants, others are tiny creatures; some are friendly to people, others, on the contrary, burn with real anger towards them. However, they also have common features, at least externally: a large hooked nose, four fingers on each hand and foot, disheveled hair and a tail that looks more like a cow. Trolls can also take the form of a dog, a black goat, or a friendly man with a tail.

In addition to hair, monsters usually have moss, grass, bushes and even trees growing on their heads. And sometimes there were a different number of heads - the more there are, the older the troll. And not only older, but also more attractive, since the abundance of heads attracted female creatures, which in Norway were called gygrs. The life expectancy of trolls remains a mystery.

They lived in dense Norwegian and Swedish forests. They also had relatives: in Iceland (they were called Tretls there), as well as on the Shetland and Orkney Islands. Trolls safely hid their homes in mountain caves, inside hills, mounds of stones, and even in holes underground. Some preferred to live alone, sometimes occupying the space of an entire mountain, while others created families or united in tribes.

Some trolls formed kingdoms with a clear hierarchy and vertical line of power. They built huge underground complexes with palaces and a system of labyrinths, such as in the Dovre Mountains, where the famous Peer Gynt, the hero of the play of the same name by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, visited.

In their caves, mountain trolls hid countless treasures - gold and precious stones - and loved to show off their accumulated wealth to people. According to legend, on the darkest nights they raised crystal palaces mounted on golden columns to the surface and rolled out huge chests for everyone to see, either throwing them open or slamming the lids, trying to attract the attention of random travelers. Although I would hardly want to see them: bulging eyes, wide open mouths, swollen noses, sniffing in search of human scent.

The trolls who lived under the bridges kept themselves apart. As a rule, these were loners who built a bridge for themselves and charged a fee to anyone who wanted to cross it. They differed from their other brothers in their complete indifference to the sun's rays. It was possible to destroy these creatures only by destroying their bridge, a carefully guarded “shrine”. There is also an opinion that trolls can sometimes leave the old bridge in order to start building a new one.

Periodically, they made night forays into the barns and storerooms of nearby villages, from where they carried out sacks of grain and kegs of new beer. And sometimes they showed up unnoticed at feasts, not disdaining to steal food directly from other people’s plates.

However, the innocent tricks of the southern trolls could not be compared with what their northern brothers from the provinces of Sogn og Fjordane, Møre og Romsdal and Trende Lag did. It was they who were accused of cannibalism and other sins, such as stealing cattle and switching babies. There was a belief that only human blood, especially Christian blood, could warm these cold and insensitive monsters. And they tried to get it by any means.

However, many people who fell under the trolls managed to avoid death. Some could remain in captivity for only a few minutes, others for months and even years. The abducted people were called enchanted or taken to the mountains. This is exactly what they said about those who were able to escape from the troll dungeons. True, the saved person could no longer return to his usual way of life. He completely lost his mind from the horror experienced in the underground lair.

For men whose wives were stolen, trolls often placed living dolls that looked exactly like the kidnapped ones. However, such dolls soon began to wither and die without revealing themselves. And while the husband mourned the death of the impostor, the real wife shed tears, buried alive in the darkness and dampness of the cave. She was forced to cook a stew from moss, bones and pieces of meat, and was mercilessly beaten and scolded at the slightest provocation.

When the troll decided to take the captive as his wife, a magic ointment was rubbed into her skin, from which her face darkened, became covered with wrinkles and pockmarks, her nose became like an onion, her body became covered with hair, her voice became rougher, and a tail pecked at the lower part of her back. The character of the unfortunate woman also changed: she gradually turned into a gluttonous, brainless troll, losing her last chance to return to the human world filled with sun and love.

In order not to fall into eternal captivity to the trolls, one had to beware of their closest relatives - the huldra. Outwardly, they looked like seductive young maidens with a shock of blond hair. Their only difference from people is their ponytails, carefully hidden under fluffy skirts.

You could meet a huldra high in the mountains or deep in the forest, where she walked with deer, singing songs. It was with her beautiful voice that the seductress lured young people to her, who easily succumbed to her charms.

The huldra's love spell lasted for years, and during this time the young man turned into a real slave, serving the entire magical family. When the capricious maiden got tired of him, she let him go free, and the former lover could wander through the dense forest for days and nights, trying in vain to remember where he came from and what happened to him. And if the huldra herself fell in love with a person and married him in church, then she lost her tail and became an ordinary woman.

Many Norwegians still believe in the existence of huldras in the Sognefjord mountains in central Norway. It is there, on the ledges of the picturesque Schosfossen waterfall, next to the Flåm railway, that theatrical performances are held every summer: girls dressed as huldras sing with bewitching voices, willingly or unwillingly seducing visiting tourists.

In numerous legends and fairy tales, trolls never leave their possessions and really do not like random guests. When the hero encounters an evil creature on the forest paths, he can only rely on his wits. The most famous hero of such legends is called Espen Askelad, which means Espen Zamarashka.

One day, when he went into the forest to chop wood, a terrible troll suddenly appeared out of nowhere and threatened to kill the boy if he did not quickly get out of his forest. But Askelad was not at a loss: he took a piece of cheese from his knapsack, squeezed it with all his might and said to the troll: “If you bother me, I will crush you like this stone!”

Seeing how strong the guy was, the stupid troll was scared to death and began to help him cut down the forest. When they had prepared enough firewood, the troll invited the man to his home for dinner. There they cooked porridge, and Askelad invited the troll to argue which of them would eat more. He immediately agreed, because he was sure that he had no equal in eating porridge. And the cunning Askelad put the sack on his lap and, when he had eaten to his fill, began to throw the porridge into the sack.

And when it was full, he cut it in the middle with a knife. Meanwhile, the troll ate so much that he could no longer swallow a single spoon. Then the man said: “Do as I did, cut your stomach!” Then you can eat twice as much!” The stupid troll did just that. And then he died. And Askelad took his treasures and went home.

Trolls sometimes appear among people in human form. When a traveler meets a troll, he may not immediately guess who he is dealing with, but if he suspects something is wrong, he should under no circumstances shake the stranger’s hand. There is a legend about this. There lived a boy named Dove. One day he was sent to herd horses somewhere near Bakke, in the Rivedal valley. On his way back he met an unknown man. There was no way he could see him because it was early in the morning and it wasn’t quite dawn yet.

When the stranger spoke to him, the boy asked him who he was and where he was from. He replied that he was from Bakke, and his name was Dove. The boy was very surprised and even confused when he heard such an answer. And the stranger shook his hand to say hello. But Dove got scared and handed him a horseshoe instead of a hand.

The stranger shook it and immediately disappeared. When the boy looked at the horseshoe, it was completely flattened. So, thanks to his resourcefulness, he was able to return home safe and sound.

All legends note one of the important features of trolls: they all have strength that is many times greater than the strength of mere mortals. But there is control over this advantage too. Even small children are well aware of it: if you ask a troll a riddle, he will certainly begin to solve it.

If the troll cannot solve the riddle, he will die, and having found the answer, he will ask his own, and if this time you cannot solve the riddle yourself, then there will be big trouble. If you managed to solve the riddle, you must try to keep the troll busy with questions until dawn, because with the first rays of the sun he will turn into stone.

How else can you outsmart a malicious creature? If you manage to recognize a troll encountered in a field before he realizes it, you need to run away from him, and so that the tracks form a cross with plow furrows on the arable land. If the meeting took place in a gorge, you need to invite the troll to follow you to the light: in the bright sun he will turn to stone.

But the main thing is to know how to handle it. Firstly, keep the name secret, and secondly, do not accept any treats from him. Once captured by a troll, you need to find out his name, using any tricks to gain power over him and thereby force him to release the captive.
Trolls can't stand the sound of church bells. If the church is far away, then the bell is brought closer to the place where they want to kick them out, and they ring it there. Many Christian attributes, such as a pectoral cross or psalter, can also scare them away. Any objects made of steel, as well as mistletoe flowers and bonfires lit at city intersections, also protect from monsters.

Meeting a troll today is very rare. Modern paranormal researchers believe that with the advent of Christianity in the northern European lands, most of the magical inhabitants of forests, mountains and valleys simply disappeared or went somewhere else.

“People lost respect for the poor cave dwellers, barbarously invaded their territory, erected churches everywhere, the ringing of whose bells sent them running wherever they could,” says Norwegian journalist and researcher Dag Ståle Hansen. He does not rule out the possibility that trolls are still hiding somewhere in the mountains, under moss-covered rocks, protecting their incredible wealth and amazing knowledge about our world from people. However, not everyone succeeds in finding them and establishing contact.

Another researcher, John Michael Grier from the USA, agrees with the Norwegian journalist. He puts trolls on a par with fairies, gnomes and elves who once lived in the forests of Western Europe. Information about them has been preserved not only in fairy tales, but also in historical documents dating back to the Middle Ages. Moreover, in many texts, Grier notes, “there is an everyday attitude towards such phenomena, as if all these creatures were part of people’s everyday life.” So why did they disappear?

According to one version, the magical creatures had their own reasons for leaving. According to another, they could only exist in the wild, so the construction of cities and the spread of agriculture forced them to leave their usual places. With the advent of scientific thinking, another point of view emerged, according to which a magical tribe never actually existed.

If you forgot/didn't know the plot of this most popular medieval ballad (also known as "Bergatrollets frieri" - "Matchmaking of a mountain troll"), then you can familiarize yourself with its Russian translation right now (it, in particular, is performed by VIA " Chur"):

One early morning in the pre-dawn hour,
When the noise of birds is not heard,
The troll maiden heard a quiet gentle voice,
Sweet to the knight who spoke thus:

"Herr Mannelig, Herr Mannelig, be my husband,
I will give you everything you want!
Whatever your heart desires, you will receive in this very moment,
Just answer me - yes or no?

I give you a dozen beautiful mares,
That they graze in the middle of a shady grove.
They did not know the saddle, they did not know the bridle,
Hot and fast as the wind.

The mills from Tillo to Terno will be yours,
Their millstones are of scarlet copper,
Their wheels cannot be found purer than silver,
Just have pity on the maiden in love!

Accept my wonderful gift - this sharp light sword,
It costs fifteen rings of gold.
He grants victory in any of the fierce battles,
With them you will gain the glory of a hero!

I'll give you a shirt that couldn't be more beautiful
What is not sewn from thread with a needle.
Such a pure white color has never been seen here before -
That silk is knitted with a skillful hand."

But the knight of the rivers arrogantly: “Go away with your gifts -
You are not wearing a holy crucifix!
You cannot tempt me, devil's daughter,
My answer to you is God’s curse!”

And the mountain troll maiden wept bitterly,
She walked away, moaning inconsolably:
"Why are you a proud knight, rejected my love
Why are you so cruel?"

The original text is presented in this charming picture

It would seem like nothing of the kind - an instructive story about an honest Christian and an evil spawn of Darkness ( Atlast Vala, Gray Guardian). But for some reason no one is interested in the motive of the troll woman herself - for what purpose does she need this same Herr Mannelig? In more detailed texts we learn what the troll wants " get rid of some pain".

The poetic translation of the legend dates back to the Middle Ages, but the original should be sought in much more ancient legends, definitely before Christian. In the Scandinavian tradition, men were also able to cast magic, but this was mainly the domain of women. Even the great Odin himself studied terrible witchcraft Seydou, sending illness, misfortune and death, from Freya.

The inhabitants of other worlds - jotuns, alvas, miniatures, trolls - cast spells, as they say, “at will,” according to a natural desire. But even among them, female witchcraft is especially dangerous (there are echoes of primitive matriarchy) - therefore, the troll sorceress is the personification of the magical “undermountain” power.

There is a later version of this legend, where the troll wanted to become a human, but for this it was necessary for some person to fall in love with her in the form of a troll, “as is” (a well-known folklore motif in the spirit frogs in a box).

Several prospective candidates fled in terror upon seeing her. Finally, the troll found the brave, brave warrior Mannelig. Realizing that objectively she had little chance of charming a man, she began to offer him treasures - the aforementioned mills, weapons, horses. But, naturally, the knight steadfastly refuses the promises of the chthonic monster.

It is immediately obvious that the authors of this treatment had little knowledge of ancient myths. Trolls could easily and simply turn into animals or humans with the help of their magic, but even in another form they were also afraid of sunlight, which was destructive to them! Therefore, the desire to “become a man,” that is, to lose immortality and witchcraft just to walk under the sun, seems ridiculous. No, trolls are much more insidious!

The answer is another belief - a troll can conceive from a man if she is in human form at the time, and from such a union a half-troll will be born - a creature with the strength and magic of trolls, but with the appearance of a man, immune to sunlight! Naturally, having given birth to such a child, the troll would easily take back all her gifts, and would even commit genocide to the surrounding people :) Mannelig, if he weren’t a fool, realized this, and therefore refused.

By the way, the Old Swedish original, which highbrow translators “elegantly” adapt to Russian, is also quite curious from this point of view. In speech lying mountain troll there are expressions of high calm - various “rosenlunde” (rose bushes), “silket det hvita” (woven with light), etc., while the Christian Mannelig answers her extremely rudely - after all, “djavulens”, which is usually translated as “devil’s child” ", etc., has a very specific obscene meaning in Swedish: "to send in three letters." Thus, the contrast between the pompously expressing troll and the Herr, sharply covering her with obscenities, reveals another meaning of the ballad - comic-erotic. Mannelig, who spent the night with the troll (this is evidenced by both the early morning and subsequent events), now listens to her promises, as well as her request to marry after everything that happened between them (like a decent knight!). But our hero just mutters, “I might have thought more if you were a Christian, but you’re just a troll! Fuck you...”.

There is also, however, a lyrical treatment of this legend, which has nothing to do with the original texts, but is very pitiful and tragic in its own way:

Only the sun illuminated the flowering meadow in the morning,
Fertile ripe fields,
It spread, blowing a heavy cold around,
Late cry of underground motives -
From an empty house, from useless years,
From the unknown dark caves
The princess of the mountain trolls climbed heavily into the light,
Her voice was weak and insinuating:

On the mountain troll princess?
There is no road forward, the trace is lost to the past -
Say yes to me or no.

My family is noble, this is the family of kings -
Don't be ashamed to become related to me,
Loved ones have long since fallen asleep in the bottomless land,
They became ancestors in abandoned tombs.
The torches in the caves of our relatives have long gone out,
There are no drunken feasts;
A dull cold darkness crept up on us from behind,
And you can't hear the children's laughter.

Sir Mannelig, Sir Mannelig, won't you marry me,
On the mountain troll princess?
The era of glory is gone along with the song about it,
Our ancient days...

Take mines as a gift, forty-eight in number,
Where there are more diamonds than coal -
It has long been difficult to bathe in luxury alone,
Can I be happy with her alone?
A silver vein deep underground,
Mountains of emeralds, sapphires;
The walls forgot the pickaxe, and suffocated the peace,
My bedroom is empty and damp -

Sir Mannelig, Sir Mannelig, won't you marry me,
On the mountain troll princess?
The road remained for me to a person from outside -
Say yes to me or no!

Take an underground stream with enchanted water,
She heals any wounds -
But she can’t bring my family back young,
My people, as we were;
A herd of unshorn horses, not hand-fed,
A rider who has not known until now -
And their foals neigh by the underground river,
And mothers play with them.

Sir Mannelig, Sir Mannelig, won't you marry me,
On the mountain troll princess?
Not a spark, not a memory of the dead fire,
In the old painful pain...

I remember our millstones, the friendly chorus of millstones,
A song of bright joyful copper,
Their spirits spun for us, and there is no one
Our gods will not answer me.
Our ancient sword will be the best gift for you,
What the mountain gnomes forged.
He could not save his brave masters
From centuries of dark old age.

Sir Mannelig, Sir Mannelig, won't you marry me,
On the mountain troll princess?
Will I bend over the cradle in your direction -
Say yes to me or no!

Your gifts are beautiful, I would gladly take them,
Be a Christian virgin.
The heavenly Father will say - there can be no union,
Should I desire God's wrath?
Your words are mysterious and your thoughts are black,
These are, indeed, troll tricks!
Temptation from the underworld and child of Satan,
You will not confuse my soul anymore!

And the mountains shook and avalanches descended,
Unyielding broken faith.
Since then it has been dark and quiet in the hot bowels of the earth,
Black winds blow freely.
Only a bitter echo is heard in the unfaithful silence
From the depths of abandoned adits:
"Sir Mannelig, Sir Mannelig, won't you marry me,
On the mountain troll princess?"

Do trolls exist - a question that is often asked by lovers of all things supernatural and unknown. Norway is considered the country where real trolls live. But are these creatures really there or is it just an old legend?

It is unlikely that the myths and legends of Norway can be called good. One of the most popular characters in Norse mythology, with whom the whole world is familiar, is the troll.

Legend says that in ancient times the planet was covered with snow. Therefore, when people came to this land (to Norway), they learned that there were already owners on it. Mermen, kikimoras, dragons and gnomes lived here.

The real masters in the mountains were the terrifying trolls. They lived in caves where they hid gold, silver and precious stones. The king among them was the oldest and most terrible.

There were giant trolls who even had several heads. There were also very small ones that lived in flowers and mosses. Their skin was covered with very rough bristles, the creatures had a hooked nose and there was always a wart on it.

According to legend, before being “born” into this world, each troll grows upside down on a tree. If it is not picked at the right time, it will grow very large, fat, angry and scary. All due to the fact that while falling from a tree the creature hits its head and becomes stupid and angry.

But if such a magical creature is picked too early, it will turn out small, “immature,” and also evil. However, if you disrupt the troll in time, he will be kind. Unfortunately, it is still a mystery who should do this.

These creatures cannot tolerate the smell of human body. Although there is a theory that these entities attack people, in fact, upon hearing the human smell, the monster immediately disappears. The longer an entity lives, the smarter it becomes.

According to legend, everyone, even the most evil creatures, has hearts. People believe that it is a precious stone.

An angry troll can cause real damage to a settlement. Therefore, Norwegian peasants tried to live in peace with them. Every year before pagan Christmas, the owner of the house placed various dishes near the gate, which were taken by the monster at night.

The creature can only be seen at night. If daylight hits the evil spirits, it will also turn into stone.

The special magical property of this creature is to transform into anyone. For example, they often took the form of beautiful girls. It is believed that if you marry such a bride, the tail that she got from the monster will fall off. If such a bride is treated poorly, she will transform into an old, angry woman.

So do trolls exist in Norway? Today, the entire population of Norway under 5 years of age firmly believes that these are real creatures. Surely in ancient times these entities really lived in these lands. But there is no exact confirmation of this.

Trolls in Norway - how to recognize a monster?

What information will be necessary for those who decide to go to Norway and try on their own to find confirmation of the existence of these mythical creatures. It’s worth warning right away: finding their habitat is very difficult.

What do trolls look like? They all have a very strange skull shape that resembles an ostrich egg. They have large ears that can glow red.

Creatures almost never disguise themselves and do not hide their true origin. It is best to look for such evil spirits at night, when they are not hiding from the sun.

These formidable (at first glance) creatures love to dance. If the troll is happy, then he sings a song, and maybe even purrs like a cat. You will be really lucky if you can ask a troll to do something. It is believed that it will never break and will look like a real work of art.

A distinctive feature of this evil spirit is its brutal appetite. They eat almost always, except when they sleep.

If you are interested in this topic, then be sure to watch the film “Trollhunters.”

Troll Wall and Troll Road in Norway

Although the question of whether there are trolls in modern Norway is very difficult to answer, there is another place through which local residents decided to perpetuate the memory of these famous mythical creatures.

Norway, Troll Wall

The Troll Wall is a popular tourist area of ​​the Trollinden mountain range. It is located on the west coast of Norway and is the tallest stone wall in Europe. A Norwegian and British team climbed this mountain range for the first time in 1965.

If you believe the ancient story, the trolls who lived in this place were too proud, independent and angered the gods with their behavior. As a result, the angry Scandinavian deities decided to take revenge on the local inhabitants and turned all the trolls into mountains. However, even being turned into rocks, they still do not stop giving salt to both the deities and the local residents.

Today, this mountain range has 14 different climbing routes. They can last from a couple of days to several weeks. Some of the routes are quite dangerous even for experienced climbers with good equipment.

This is one of the most favorite places for those who practice BASE jumping. Even though the treacherous wall is a very dangerous place, and jumping here is risky, this does not stop true extreme sports enthusiasts.

Stretching among the mountain peaks of southwestern Norway “Troll Staircase”

Probably many who would like to visit Norway know what the troll trail is. Otherwise, this tourist road is called the “troll staircase”. This is a very dangerous narrow route, 106 km long.

Around the trail there are picturesque views of hills and fjords, national parks and nature reserves. This path was opened in the summer of 1936, construction lasted exactly 8 years. The name of the trail itself was given personally by King Haakon VII of Norway.

As you can see, trolls are an important part of Norway's cultural heritage. These creatures are frequent heroes of fairy tales and legends. But whether to believe in the existence of such ancient monsters or not is up to you.

One early morning in the pre-dawn hour,
When the noise of birds is not heard,
The troll maiden heard a quiet gentle voice,
Sweet to the knight who spoke thus:

"Herr Mannelig, Herr Mannelig, be my husband,
I will give you everything you want!
Whatever your heart desires, you will receive in this very moment,
Just answer me - yes or no?
(Excerpt from song)

A story about an unlucky knight and a troll maiden
A long winter evening in one of the nameless taverns promised to be boring. The guests sat at the tables with a bored look: someone was picking at the already cooled stew, someone, with already cloudy eyes, was drilling into a mug of bitter ale, and someone was trying to entertain themselves by playing dice with frankly roguish-looking people. There was everyone in the inn, from pilgrims to robbers, the most important of whom seemed to me to be the innkeeper himself. There were noble gentlemen here, stuck in this hole, with everyone who set off on the journey in the month when the frosts began, there were also a couple of knights from the patchwork duchies, and several mercenaries. I am already silent for ordinary commoners. Everyone who sat in the tavern was so different, but united and held together by the bad weather that overtook them, whether they wanted it or not, no one could leave the tavern until the end of the week of snowstorms. Because only a madman or a suicide who wished to freeze to death can go into the raging icy elements.
So, this winter evening could have turned out to be completely boring if there had not been a storyteller in the tavern, or, as the northerners call it, Skald. The skald sat apart, no one paid attention to him, but then he decided that it was time to tell a story, or he just wanted mulled wine, at someone else’s expense. However, this is not as important as the story he told.
- Dear guests! – the skald addressed the people in a hoarse voice. - It's time to tell you a story.
After these words, the inn’s attention was focused on the old man, and even those who were playing dice decided to be quieter. Meanwhile, the old man continued: “My story is about an unlucky knight and a maiden, a troll princess.” I am sure each of you knows that if a person falls in love with a troll, and their love is mutual, then the troll maiden will turn into a beautiful girl and will be a faithful and loving wife to anyone who decides to do such an act. “The old man smiled, seeing that all the tavern’s attention was focused on him.
- So one day, a long time ago...

Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived two twin brothers, both hereditary knights who knew how to fight and had gone through more than one fierce battle. But they never worked together, because each of the brothers was jealous of each other and fiercely hated each other. One was called Ser Manelling, the other was called Ser Koldering. Ser Manneling was the best knight of the Order of the White Rose, but he was angry and treacherous, it was with this that he paved his way to the very top of the order, it was thanks to his treachery that he became the master of the order. And Ser Koldering was a knight in the service of an unknown and seedy order, he was sincere and kind and respected the laws of honor, unlike his brother. That's why he hated his brother fiercely. And so it happened that, having learned about the exploits of his brother, Ser Manelling, the troll princess decided to see what he was like, the great knight of the white rose. And so, seeing him, the troll maiden fell in love with the knight in white armor, so much so that she could not imagine life without him. Although she did not know her chosen one at all, because their meeting almost became fatal for her. During one of Ser Manneling's campaigns, the maiden decided to confess her feelings to him and ask the great knight to become her husband. But as soon as Ser Manelling saw her, he grabbed his sword. However, he decided to listen to the poor girl, which seemed unheard of nobility on his part, because he was famous for being a cruel warrior and a zealot of the faith. Although he didn’t even smell of faith. Ser Menelling was only interested in wealth, and hiding behind the name of the church, you can collect a lot of gold and jewelry.
So, this is what the troll princess did not promise him: beautiful mares racing with the winds, and all the mills in the domain of her father, the foothill king of the trolls, and a shirt woven as if from pure light, and even a great sword from the troll forge. But the knight was adamant; he did not like the troll maiden, because she was ugly in appearance. And he decided to take away by force the gifts that the naive maiden had promised him. Snatching his sword, he rushed towards her and only the fact that trolls can become invisible saved her from the slaughter of the arrogant knight. The poor maiden wandered for a long time, rejected by her chosen one, and many of her bitter tears were soaked into the ground, but, quite by chance, she met Ser Manelling’s brother, Ser Coldring. At first she was afraid that the knight would kill her, but then she noticed that it was not Ser Manelling, that it was another person, just like her beloved knight. And so early in the morning she decided to try her luck again. As soon as the knight woke up and went to the stream, she began to sing a song and her voice charmed Ser Coldring so much that he was not even afraid when she suddenly began to sing.
Ser Coldring liked the troll maiden's voice alone so much that he asked her to sing again, and again. Although he didn't see her, he thought she was a wonderful girl. And so he asked her to come out to him so that he could see her and give praise and honor to the owner of such a beautiful voice. The troll princess was afraid that if he saw her, he would run away, or worse, his brother would grab his sword. She asked him to swear that he would not touch her and would not be afraid. Although the knight was wary of these words, he swore an oath to her on his honor, and as you know, the oath of a true knight is an unbreakable oath. And Ser Coldring was a true knight. Only after this did the troll maiden appear before his eyes and approach him. The knight, although he was surprised, smiled brightly and radiantly at the troll girl. He asked her name and she told him that her name was Rundga, the troll princess. The knight immediately bowed, as befits etiquette, to bow to noble ladies and girls. The troll maiden was greatly surprised by the gallant manners of the knight and asked his name. Ser Koldringa introduced himself to her and she was surprised to realize that this was the brother of Ser Manelling, the man she fell in love with. She told Ser Coldring her story, and how her brother rejected her, a glimmer of hope dawned in her soul that maybe at least the brother of the great knight would be favorable to her. She offered him the same gifts that she had given his brother. But the knight refused all the maiden's gifts and told her. I see that your soul is pure, as is your intention. I won’t lie, this is exactly what I like about you. I fell in love with your voice and your honest soul, Princess Rungda, and therefore I ask you for your hand in order to at least somehow atone for the guilt of my terrible brother.
Not because of miraculous gifts, but out of good will, their union was sealed in the kingdom of the foothills, with the blessing of her father. And just in time for the wedding, the troll maiden turned into a beautiful girl, whose beauty eclipsed the beauty of all earthly women. After all, Ser Coldring's love was pure and sincere. And when he saw that she had become a beauty, and that her father was leading her to the altar, he realized how much his brother had lost. They say that the wedding in the foothill kingdom thundered for a week, so much so that the mountains shook. Since then, the knight Ser Coldring and the princess of the foothill kingdom of Rundga have always been together, and their love for each other grew every day. And the threads of their destinies were intertwined so tightly that even the weaver of destinies did not dare to break the thread of one of them, and therefore they lived happily ever after, and the knight who became the king of the mountain and his queen under the mountain. And their kingdom always flourished and only increased, because they loved each other, more than life, until their death. And they died on the same day. This is how the legend of the noble Ser Codring and the beautiful troll princess Rundge ends.

As soon as the storyteller finished his story, there was applause in the tavern, someone ordered the skald a drink, but everyone was happy, because this story dispersed the boredom that hovered over the tavern. I think that many people in the inn thought about their affairs, whether they were as sincere in their lives as Ser Kolndring was sincere, or as greedy and cruel as Ser Manelling. What can I say, other people's minds are a mystery.
And this was the first story told by the skald during the week of snowstorms.